Rabbi Raziel Shevach, a 35-year-old father of six, was killed in a driveby shooting on January 9 near his home in the illegal settlement outpost of Havat Gilad. He was the second rabbi to have been murdered in the West Bank in as many days, in seemingly unrelated attacks.

“During the attempt to arrest him, Jarrar emerged armed from the structure in Yamoun in which he was hiding and was shot by the security forces. An M-16 [assault rifle] and a pack with explosives were discovered on his person,” the Shin Bet said.

Heavy snow hit a wide area of the Sea of Japan coast on Tuesday, leading one driver to die from carbon monoxide poisoning when he was trapped in his car and stranding some 1,500 vehicles on a main road.

The snow, which mainly hit Fukui, Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures, forced more than 400 schools to close and disrupted the operation of bullet trains, airplanes and highways, according to authorities.

The weather agency warned the area may have more snow Wednesday.

Kanazawa had snowfall of 75 centimeters on Tuesday evening, the biggest amount in 17 years in the city.

In Fukui Prefecture a line of some 1,500 vehicles stretched for about 10 kilometers on Route 8. The Ground Self-Defense Force mobilized more than 700 personnel to help remove snow and provide water and food to drivers.

Four adults accused of abusing children at a circus training school west of Sydney deny the allegations against them, a court has heard.

Seven people linked to the business in the Blue Mountains were arrested on Monday and had 127 charges laid against them over allegations they physically and sexually abused three boys younger than eight between 2014 and 2016.

The boys, who were known to them, were allegedly forced to produce child exploitation material and reportedly had to take part in “rituals” where they had blood taken from them and were told to drink it.

Kyodo:Pilot also found dead after SDF chopper crash in southwestern Japan

MSgt. Hiroki Takayama, the 26-year-old co-pilot, was confirmed dead Monday and local police had been searching for the remains of Lt. Col. Kenichi Saito, the 43-year-old pilot.[…] a body found Tuesday morning beneath the crashed helicopter was confirmed to be Saito’s.

Telegraph:Toy tiger sparks armed police stand-off on Scottish farm

Bruce Grubb, 24, called the police, fearing the predator would attack his pregnant cows, but became suspicious when it failed to move during a 45-minute stand-off.

After driving towards it in his truck he realised he was looking at a large cuddly toy.

By that time several police vehicles, including an armed unit, had responded to the incident at the farm near Peterhead on Saturday. Officers even checked with a local wildlife park in case a tiger was on the loose.

When the truth emerged, Police Scotland said they were regarding it as a “false call made with genuine good intent”. Officers removed the tiger, telling an embarrassed Mr Grubb they wanted to keep it as a mascot.

…the first officer on the scene “refused to get out of the squad car” as he thought it was real.

Now picture a British Barney Fife:

“Our ultimate aim is to protect the public and keep our officers safe when faced with uncertain situations. Until you know exactly what you are dealing with, every option has to be considered.

“The incident was stood down within 45 minutes once officers attended and established there was no threat to the public.”